Apparatus for pulping papermaking material



NOV. 4, 1952 w, v, KNOLL- 2,616,340

APPARATUS FOR PULPING PAPERMAKING MATERIAL Filed Feb. 1, 1949 2 SHEETSSl-1EET 1 FIG. I

FIG. 2

WILLIAM NOLL awmawm H s Gttomeg NOV. 4, 1952 w v, KNOLL 2,616,340

APPARATUS FOR PULPING PAPERMAKING MATERIAL Filed Feb. 1, 1949 2 SHEETSSHEET 2 FIG. 4

Q v lhwentor WILLIAM V. KNOLL J B m HIS (Ittorneg Patented Nov. 4, 1952 APPARATUS FOR PULPING PAPER-MAKING MATERIAL William V. Knoll, Dayton, Ohio Application February 1, 1949, Serial No. 74,032

3 Claims.

This invention relates to apparatus for converting paper-making material into pulp suitable for use in the manufacture of paper.

The primary object of this invention is to provide an improved apparatus for pulping papermaking material.

Another object of the present invention is the provision of an improved apparatus comprising a vessel or tank and a plurality of comparatively small and compact impeller or rotor units lo cated near the bottom of the tank for reducing the paper making material to pulp.

A further object is to provide an improved machine comprising a vessel or tank having an inwardly-sloping or angular bottom and a plurality of comparatively small and compact beater or impeller units equally spaced about the angular portion of the tank for pulping paper-making material.

With these and incidental objects in view, the

invention includes certain novel features of construction and combinations of parts, a preferred form or embodiment of which is hereinafter described with reference to the drawings which accompany and form a part of this specification.

The conventional types of apparatus used at present for treating paper-making material or stock are somewhat similar in design and operation and consist generally of a cylindrical vessel or tank with a rounded bottom portion or in some cases a sloping bottom portion and a flat disk type of impeller or agitator of comparatively large diameter located near the bottom of the tank.

These large disks obtain the necessary peripheral velocity, when driven at comparatively slow speeds, to cause the paper-making stock to move in a horizontal direction away from the periphery of said disks and upwardly along the sides of the vessel, to obtain the desired circulation and pulping action.

Driving these large heavy disks at slow speeds necessitates the use of complicated, cumbersome, and expensive reduction-gear apparatus in connection with operating motors, which are also necessarily large and powerful. f

The present invention is directed to an improved type of pulping apparatus comprising a round or square vessel or tank with an inverted frusto-conical bottom in the case of the round vessel and an inverted pyramidal bottom in the case of the square tank. The sloping sides of the vessel may be inclined at the most suitable angle to direct the material in the proper path to obtain the desired circulation and pulping action, with the most economical expenditure of power.

For securing the proper circulating action in an eflicient and economical manner, the applicant proposes to utilize two or more comparatively small, compact, and complete impeller units mounted on the angular or sloping portion of the vessel and equally disposed in relation to each other in a horizontal plane.

The comparatively small impellers of these compact units are driven at comparatively high speeds by individual operating motors, to which they are connected for most efficient and economical operation. The impellers have a plurality of radial blades on their external faces to impart the proper circulating and beating action to the paper-making material.

In pulping machines of relatively small capacity, two of the impeller units should be suflicient to obtain the desired pulping action, while in machines with larger capacity three or more of the units may be required to obtain the desired pulping action.

In case of the failure of one of the units, the pulping machine may still be operated, at reduced efficiency, by the remaining units until the defective unit can be repaired or replaced, thus eliminating costly shut-downs of the entire papermaking equipment.

In the ensuing pages, the mechanism outlined in general above will be described in detail.

Referring to Figs. 1 and 4 of the drawings, in which like reference numerals refer to like parts, one form of the apparatus of this invention comprises a cylindrical or round vessel or tank l0 supported by suitable legs H and having an inverted frusto-conical bottom portion l2, which terminates in a central neck portion [3. The opening in the neck I3 is covered by a cap 14 secured to an angle piece l5 by bolts or other suitable means, said angle piece encircling the neck I3, to which it is secured by being riveted or welded. Suitable means, such as a yieldable gasket (not shown), is interposed between the plate It and the neck I3 to prevent leakage. Threaded in an opening in the plate I4 is an outlet pipe is for withdrawing the finished or treated paper-making material from the tank I 0.

The upper edge of the tank I is reinforced by an angle piece II, which encircles said upper edge and is secured thereto by riveting or welding.

For convenience, the present invention contemplates the use of four comparatively small identical impeller units equally spaced about the frusto-conical bottom I2, as shown in Figs. 1 and 4. However, the number of impeller units employed may be varied to meet the particular requirements, such as the size and capacity of the pulping equipment or the time in which it is required to treat one charge of the papermaking material, and for these reasons it is not desired to limit the apparatus to any particular number of impeller units.

Each of the identical impeller units comprises 'a comparatively, small impeller disk 2% (Fig. 1) rotating within the tank and located parallel to the internal surface of the conical bottom 12 and in closely spaced relationship thereto. vThe disk 20 is secured on the upper'end'of a corresponding drive shaft 21 rotatably supported at rightangles' to the conical bottom and connected by a flexible coupling .22 to the armature shaft 23 of a corresponding comparatively small operatingmotor 26.. The motor 24 is mounted on an angular surface of a bracket 25 secured to a suitable base such as a fioor, to which the legs I l are also secured in any suitable manner. The drive shaft 2| is preferably journaled in axially alined bearings, one of which is mounted in a bearing retainer 30 adjustably supported in a bearing housing 26 secured to the external surface of the conical portion l2 of the tank in by suitable bolts which extend through clearance holes in said conical portion and engage threaded holes in a reinforcing plate 27 secured to the internal surface of said conical portion. Suitable means such as a gasket (not shown) is provided between the housing 26 and the outer surfaceof the conical portion E2 to prevent leakage.

The other alined bearing is mounted in'a housing 28 secured to the companion housing 26 by suitable bolts, and said housing 28 also supports a thrust ball-bearing 29, which, in cooperation with, a thrust washer retained in an annular groove in the shaft 2}, and a suitable thrust surface on the bearing retainer 39, controls and provides an adjustment for the end play of said shaft 2 I. A spring-pressed packing gland 29 (Fig. 1) freely encircles the shaft 2| and compresses packing material around said shaft and .within a counterbore in the bearing retainer 30 .to prevent leakage at this source.

The upper face of the impeller 28 (Figs. 1, 2, and 3) has therein a curved recess 3|, which conforms to the shape of the bottom portion of a plurality of equally, spaced impeller vanes 32, which extend radially from near the center of said impeller 25] to its periphery. The vanes 32 are preferably secured to the bottom of the recess 3| by Welding.

In the present adaptation, there are four of the impeller units equally spaced about the coneshaped bottom [2, as indicated schematically in Figs. 1 and 4.

Fig. illustrates diagrammatically a variation of the pulping apparatus employing a square tank 35 .instead of the round tank It, shown in Fig.1,

4 said square tank having an inverted pyramidal bottom 36, the four angular sides of which support four impeller units, indicated by circles 31, said units being similar in every respect to those shown in Fig. 1 and described above.

In operation, the tanks [0 or 35 are partially filled with water, and the motors 24 for the impeller units are put into operation. Then the paper-making material, which. may be new pulp material in sheet or lap form or waste materials, is dumped into the tank either in small quantities, or, if desired, the tank may be charged to capacity all at once without reducing the efficiency of the impeller units and without danger of damaging said impeller units.

Th comparatively small and simple impellers 20 revolving at relatively high speeds cause the pulp mixture or stock to circulate downwardly from the center of the tank into the active operating range of said impellers, whereupon the speed of the impellers diverts the material-outwardly in all directions, thus creating areas; of violent turbulence, which disintegrates the: papermaking material in'a rapid and efficient manner.

After the material has been reduced to the required fineness for paper-making, it'is withdrawn through the outlet [6.

While the forms of mechanism shown and described herein are admirably adapted to fulfill the objects primarily stated, it is to be understood that it is not intended to confine the invention to the forms or embodiments disclosed herein, for it is susceptible of embodiment in various other forms.

What is claimed is:

1. In a machine for treating paper-making material, the combination of a cylindrical-treating tank; an inverted frusto-com'cal bottom in the tank said bottom constructed and arranged to direct and concentrate the heavier portions of the paper-making material toward the center of said container, as said portions settle; a plurality of drive shafts rotatably mounted at right angles to the conical bottom and equally spaced in a horizontal plane near the center of said conical bottom, the inner ends of said shafts extending within the tank; a comparatively'small impeller disk secured on the inner end of each shaft, said disks parallel to the conical bottom and located in closely spaced relationship thereto; radial vanes secured to: the'innermost faces of the disks; and an operating motor for each shaft and disk, said motors connected to the outer ends of the correspondingsshafts, to revolve the disks at relatively high speeds. to circulate and beat the paper-making material as itis'concentrated toward the center by the conicalbottom to reduce said material to proper fineness forpaper-making.

2. In an apparatus for pulping paper-making stock, the combination of a square pulping tank; a frusto-pyramidal bottom portion in the tank said bottom constructed and arranged to direct and concentrate theheavier portions of the paper-making stock toward the center of said tank, as said portions settle; a drive shaft rotatably mounted on each angular face of the pyramidal bottom, said shafts located at right angles to the corresponding angular faces and having their inner ends extending within the tank; a comparatively small impeller disk secured on the inner end of each shaft parallel with and in closely spaced relationship to the adjacent surface of the corresponding angular face; radial agitating vanes secured to the innermostfaces of the disks; and an operating motor connected to the outer end of each of the shafts and effective to revolve said shafts and the corresponding disks at relatively high speeds to circulate and beat the paper-making stock as it is concentrated toward the center by the angular faces of the pyramidal bottom to reduce said stock to pulp.

3. In a machine for treating paper-making stock, the combination of a container; an inwardly sloping angular bottom in the container to direct and concentrate the heavier portions of the paper-making stock towards the center of said container, as said portions settle; a plurality of shafts equally spaced around the angular bottom and rotatably mounted at right angles to said bottom, the inner ends of said shafts extending within the container; a comparatively small impeller disk secured to the inner end of each shaft, parallel with and in closely spaced relationship to the adjacent surface of the angular bottom; agitating vanes on the inwardly disposed faces of the disks; and a driving motor operatively connected to the outer end of each shaft to revolve the disks at relatively high speeds to circulate and beat the paper-making stock as it is directed and concentrated toward the center by the angular bottom to reduce said stock to the proper fineness for use in making paper.

WILLIAM V. KNOLL.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS OTHER REFERENCES Paper Trade Journal, Industrial Development Section. pages 17 and 18, January 6, 1949 issue. 

